Voices in the Night
by Alpacca Joe
Summary: Thinking of days long past, Ryouga decides to tribute them with a song.... A Ranma 1/2 Songfic


_Disclaimer: Don't sue me over Ranma ½. 'Sain't mine. But this fic's mine. Ya wanna use it, ya ask me first. The song 'Voices' belongs to whoever owns Macross Plus. All rights, whatever._

_While gazing at the stars, Ryoga remembers days long gone, & decides to tribute them with a song._

_A BloodRose Creation__@}-;-_

_ Voices in the Night_

___ Hibiki Ryoga sighed as he finished cleaning up the remains of his dinner. He threw a few more sticks onto the fire & jumped up onto the pyramid of pipes at one end of the vacant lot. He sat on the cool steel & gazed at the full moon, smiling slightly. He pulled something from his pocket & studied it carefully in the low light._

_ You Are Cordially Invited To Share In the Joy_

_ Of This Joining of Families & Souls;_

_ Saotome Ranma Tendo Akane_

_ You Are Invited as an Honored Guest & _

_ Best Man to the Groom _

_ To: Hibiki Ryoga-san._

_ Chuckling softly, he pulled a pen from his pocket to check the box that would confirm or deny his presence at the wedding, & at Ranma's side. The pen wavered between Yes & No for a moment before he dropped his hand to his lap & sighed. Gazing at the stars, his smile widened as he recalled the days when his life had been simple. He would challenge Ranma to duels, & would get lost for weeks on end. And just when he would give up hope of ever finding his way home again, Ranma would come & find him, wherever he may have been, & take him home. _

_ He remembered when one day, instead of the school, he found himself in a huge auditorium. And sitting in the middle of the stage was a grand piano. His eyes had grown wide, his heart speeding up to thrice its normal pace, & he had raced to the stage before he knew what he was doing. Sitting in front of the ivory keys had seemed natural to him, & when his fingers had come in contact with the cool ivory, they had run free of their previous confines of eating, writing & training, finding a new purpose in their existence. He had played long & well that day, & when it finally came time for him to leave, he could barely bring himself to stop. Somehow he did, however. And from that day on, his world had changed._

_ When he got home, he had begged his mother for piano lessons, & she had quickly obliged. Ever since, every time he felt depressed, angry or confused, he had let the music flow through him, bringing him peace. He had no piano now, but the music was there still, & he could still feel it flowing through him, as if it never left. Raising his eyes to the stars, Ryoga let the music flow through his heart & from his lips in a melodious stream._

_ "The first word was 'dream'_

_ It came to me as I slept._

_ Gently bringing out the darkness deep inside my heart."_

_His lips curled upwards into a happy smile as the words came to him, bringing with them a sense of peace he thought he would never feel again. So engrossed in this feeling was Ryoga, he didn't notice when someone entered the lot behind him._

_ "The second word was 'wind'_

_ Show me the way._

_ I beat my wings & fly into the arms of God..."_

_ Kuonji Ukyo gasped silently as she listened to Ryoga sing. He was sitting atop the steel pyramid, outlined by starlight, the flickering fire playing in his ebony hair & making him seem surreal. His silky baritone carried sweet & clear through the night & was, in fact, what had brought her. Ukyo took a few steps forward & sat on Ryoga's pack as she closed her eyes & listened._

_ "As if counting out the sorrows that have melted all away_

_ the golden apples fall._

_ Falling one at a time..._

_ To a place with nothing to see is where I return_

_ a place I have only one life to struggle to get back to._

_ An old book of magic spells_

_ the curtain of the silent moonlit night holds_

_ the promise of our being together again_

_ only that._

_ We can fly. We have wings._

_ We can touch floating dreams._

_ Call me from so far_

_ through the wind in the night."_

_ His eyes closed, Ryoga's face was a mask of peace & contentment as he sang the final verse._

_ "The third word that came 'hmmnnn'_

_ If I can just listen closely_

_ these trembling arms of yours that I hold_

_ I can gently set free." _

_ Tears were flowing freely down Ukyo's cheeks as she opened her eyes. On her face was a smile so full of joy it seemed almost to be a being in itself. With trembling hands, she applauded quietly & chuckled slightly as Ryoga froze at the sudden sound. He turned slowly around & was shocked to see Ukyo, cheeks glistening wetly in the flickering light, standing behind him. Ryoga's face grew warm as he realized she had heard him sing._

_ "Um, Ukyo, how long have you been here?" He asked, clinging to some faint hope that she had just arrived, missing his performance. She smiled gently & leapt easily onto the pyramid. _

_ "The whole time." She said, plopping down beside him. She couldn't help but laugh as his already considerable blush deepened. Making a snap decision, she leaned her head on Ryoga's strong shoulder & sighed. Ryoga stiffened for a second, then relaxed as the sensation became comfortable._

_ "How long have you been able to sing like that, sugar?" She murmured as she fished something from her pocket. Ryoga was silent for a while, then sighed lightly, his eyes traveling to the stars._

_ "I only sing when I feel depressed, angry or confused. I haven't sang like this for a long time." He said softly. It surprised him that he had told her this. He had never admitted the fact that he sang to anyone before, & especially not to someone like Ukyo. But now, he realized that it felt... right. With Ukyo, he realized, he could say anything, things he wouldn't even tell Ranma, his best friend. Smiling slightly, he moved, almost unconsciously, to drape his arm around Ukyo's shoulders. She leaned deeper into Ryoga & sighed._

_ "I take it you got one of these too, huh?"_

_She held her own invitation before Ryoga's eyes. It seemed that Akane wanted Ukyo for her maid of honor. Ryoga smiled. Ukyo noticed the happy smile on Ryoga's lips, & couldn't help but mirror it. It seemed that, no matter how much she had loved Ranma, she had spent almost her entire life trying to convince herself that she didn't see him as her little brother. Now, it seemed, she had finally accepted it._

_ "So you gonna go?"_

_Ryoga looked surprised at first, then turned his hazel eyes to her brown._

_ "Are you?"_

_She just looked at him for a second, then smiled & took the pen from Ryoga's hand. Without a second thought, she checked a box & handed it back. She leaned into him once more with a small smile._

_ "Sing me another one."_

_Ryoga laughed outright as he, too, made his choice. Tightening his arm around Ukyo's shoulders, he let his music spill into the starry sky._

_ The fire flickered, its light momentarily falling upon two pieces of paper lying on the steel. On both, a box was checked. The word next to the box was 'Yes'._

_ Voices in the Night: End_

_Author's Notes_

_Well, that's it. Did you like it? If not, than you know where you can stick it. I decided ta write this cuz the last Ryoga songfic I wrote was all depressing, & I think he deserves to be happy. I got the idea from 'Hidden Talents' by Ray Haney Jr. Read his fics!_

_All questions, comments, whatever can be sent to __nasty311@netzero.net___

_All flames will be used to roast the marshmallows._

_See ya._

_ BloodRose@}-;-_


End file.
